Review fuel pricing model: Paraffin price hike will hurt the poor

1 February 2022

Note to Editors: Please find attached soundbite by Kevin Mileham MP.

The DA has noted the announcement of yet another hefty fuel hike which will come into effect on Wednesday.

We’ve previously written to the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe, requesting a review of the fuel pricing model. The Minister has yet to respond to our letters and statements regarding our suggestion to consult with major sector stakeholders and develop a new fuel pricing model that recognises the impact of fuel prices on our economy (including high taxes, and consumer and producer inflation).

The latest price hikes will see petrol prices increase by 53c a litre, diesel will increase by between 79c and 80c, and illuminated paraffin will see a staggering increase of R1.01. To the many South Africans who are dependent on paraffin, this increase will be a major blow to their pockets.

This price hike will put tremendous strain on the poorest and most vulnerable in South Africa. With budgets already slashed to the bone after two years of the ANC government’s economic mismanagement of the Covid-19 pandemic, they simply cannot afford the resultant increase in food and transport that the fuel price hike will bring.

Once again, the Minister refuses to put the people of South Africa first. The ANC government continues to put their irrational policies and politics above the well-being of ordinary South Africans struggling to survive.

Issued by Kevin Mileham, DA Shadow Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, 1 February 2022